Over the summer I saw a particular die that I had a visceral reaction to. I had no set plan in mind, I just knew I had to have it.
It’s not an exact match for the Gingerbread Dollhouse, but it’s pretty darn close!
And I finally got a chance to use it on a project for the Imagine blog, though I doubt it’ll be the last time I find a project for it.
Go check it out and see how to create a couple of versions of faux snow for holiday cards and layouts.
Or three…
I’m fairly certain I’ve mentioned the metal house “lanterns” that we saw last November in a shop in Disney Springs and how amazing they were and how sad I was that they weren’t for sale. Turns out they are available from the Acorn catalog, and aren’t terribly expensive at about $30 a pop. But by the time I’d found them there, I’d already purchased a trio of papier mache houses to make my own Christmas village with.
Sadly, it took a full year before I got around to painting the houses, but I’m glad I waited! The Delicata inks I used to add the metallic sheen to these houses really made the project! You can see the step-by-step over on the Imagine blog!
Go ahead and say it: And also with you.
(Even if I’m still more or less caffeine free, this card makes me happy.)
Imagine is teaming up with Flourishes LC, today, for a blog hop and I got to play with their My Cup Over Flows set to make this card tutorial for you!
So the main image of the coffee cut included words that tied into a bible verse. That’s all well and good, but it didn’t fit my vision for the card. The awesome thing about acrylic stamps, though, is that they are incredibly easy to manipulate. I **carefully** cut away the words from the coffee cup and then selected the rest of the stamps I wanted to use to build my scene.
I stamped them in Coffee Bean (appropriate, no?) Brilliance ink, embossed them with clear embossing powder, and colored them with my Spectrum Noir markers. Even though I had them, more or less, in the spots I wanted them, I decided to fussy cut the elements out and layer them on a stamped background instead.
To make that background, I used several of the images in a cluster and Versamark Dazzle ink in Champagne to make a tone-on-tone background on craft cardstock (by DCWV). Just stamp and turn and stamp and turn and fill the cardstock with the images.
I layered the stamped craft cardstock onto a white and then a yellow patterned cardstock (the latter from the Recollections Country Farm House paper stack) before using  Helmar Liquid Scrap Dots to position and pop-up my stamped and colored elements.
It still needed a little something, but I didn’t want to clutter up the main images, so I grabbed my awl and a ruler and punched holes on the top and middle layers every 5 mm, offsetting the outer layer punches to fall between in the inner ring.
Then I sewed a zig zag backstitch through the layers with yellow thread and a regular sewing needle. Could I have put it on my sewing machine? I suppose, but I don’t like to dull my sewing needles like that, and this way was much more precise. And the stitching, I think, is the perfect touch to finish the card. It took about as long as the coloring did, but it was worth it.
Even if my coffee got cold in the process… Oh, the irony.
Caffeine Blessings Card Recipe:
Flourishes LC was kind enough to send a few different stamps sets and I also made these cards, too:
Camellia Card Recipe
Winter Cheer Bouquet Card Recipe:
And since this is a blog hop, it’s really worth checking out all the other cool projects made from this latest Flourishes LC and Imagine collaboration! Leave a comment on each blog in the hop for a chance to win prizes, too!
Imagine Blog -Â https://imaginecraftsblog.
Barbara Thompson -Â http://cardsandpaperfun.
Toni Storie -Â http://sweetpeasstory.
Alison Heikkila -Â http://
Beverly Cole -Â http://bevsbliss.blogspot.
Kren Kurts -Â http://afourthlife.blogspot.
Neva Cole -Â http://snippetscrafter.
Roni Johnson -Â http://inkstainswithroni.
Linda Lucas -Â https://
Davi Long -Â http://alstromeriaartistry.
Jennifer Vanderbeek -Â https://scrapsoflife.com/Â <<–You Are Here
Naomi Gong -Â http://www.naomigong.com/
Vickie Yeakley -Â https://stuffbyvickie.
Nadine Carlier -Â http://myscrapnstuff.
Rebecca Ednie –Â http://eclecticendeavours.
Gloria Hayoung Lee -Â http://iiroom1004.blogspot.
Mark Melnick -Â http://latidart.blogspot.
Shirley Qu -Â http://mypinkieisinkie.
Martha Lucia Gomez -Â http://stampartpapel.com/
Terre Fry -Â http://terresscraptherapy.
Mary Prasad -Â http://artbymdp.blogspot.
Trisha Traxler -Â http://simplystamping.
Monica Edwards -Â http://scraps2treasure.
Flourishes L.C -Â http://flourisheslc.com/
It’s time for another blog hop courtesy of Imagine, this time with an assist from Echo Park.
From the various collections I opted for the Creative Agenda kit and used a bit of this and that to put together this fun to-do list-inspired birthday card.
I used the Pennants die set to create a void in a piece of one of the patterned papers that was backed with some self-adhesive foam for dimension.
Then, on a sheet of white paper, I stamped the Circles acrylic stamp with Elderberry Memento ink, Dandelion Memento Luxe Ink, and the teal shade from the Tahiti Kaleidacolor ink pad applied randomly across the stamp with Ink Blushers.This became the background for the die cut sections in the front part of my card.
I decorated the card with stickers from the kit and a trimmed-out piece of a to-do list from one of the other Creative Agenda patterned papers. The list got a few check marks from the Creative Agenda Enamel Shapes and I did a fair amount of pen detailing with a Pitt Pen. I also sewed a bit of baker’s twine between the pennants to make it look more like a banner before matting the whole thing one a striped piece of patterned paper, also from the kit.
Once everything was secured, I filled in some of the circles in the background with StazOn Studio Glaze and Radiant Neon Amplify! to add a bit of dimension.
While this card is a lot busier than I usually would create, I think it’s loads of fun. And I’d be happy to check off those to-dos pretty much any day!
Here’s the full supply list used for this project:
Imagine: Memento Luxe (Dandelion), Memento (Elderberry), Kaleidacolor (Tahiti), InkBlushers, Radiant Neon Amplify! (Electric Coral, Electric Yellow), StazOn Studio Glaze (Cactus Green, Bahama Blue, Cotton White)
Echo Park: Creative Agenda Collection Kit, Enamel Shapes, Circles 4×6 Stamp, Pennants Die Set
Miscellaneous: Self-Adhesive Foam, Die Cutting Machine, Acrylic Block, White Cardstock, Black Pen, Baker’s Twine, Sewing Needle, Glue Stick
And now, if you’re hopping along from post to post, your next stop is Wendy Sue Anderson’s blog. But before you head out, don’t forget to leave a comment at each stop along the way. Both Imagine and Echo Park Paper will be giving away prizes to commenters!
But how awesome is “lost in the shuffle” as an apology for missing a card-worthy occasion? It’s just one of the many sentiments included in the “In The Cards” stamp set (and coordinating “Shuffle” Fri-Dies set) that I received as part of today’s Imagine Crafts/CAS-ual Fridays blog hop!
While I love the stamp set, I ended up using more of the die set for this card since I wanted to try the inlay technique and I’m very happy with how it all turned out.
Materials:
Spray a sheet of cardstock with Walnut Ink and allow to dry.
Cut numerous diamonds, hearts, clubs, and spades from the Shuffle Fri-Dies set from the sprayed papers. For variation, feel free to cut some from the more speckled edges as well as some from the solid-color areas.
Cut those same shapes from the card front in a random pattern. Make sure to cut some off the edges of the card front to really “sell” the random pattern idea.
Apply adhesive to the entire front panel of the card front and match the card front over the adhesive. The glue peeks through the holes, making it easy to slot in the colored die cuts.
Trim 1/4″ strips from the sprayed card stock and make them into a frame just inside the perimeter of the card.
Spritz the assembled card with irRESISTible texture spray and allow to dry.
Stamp a sentiment onto a 1/2″ strip of white card stock. Trim the ends, add a crystal, and pop the strip up with ZapDots and it’s done!
So, the next step on the hop will bring you to Karen Griglione’s blog! And if you missed a stop on the hop, you can find the full list of participating blogs (with links!) over at the Imagine Crafts post.
Now, a little bird tells me that there’s a giveaway happening as part of this blog hop, and all you have to do is leave a comment to enter! And if you can’t think of anything else to say, tell me your favorite card game! I’ve always been a Gin Rummy fan, myself. Winners will be announced on the 27th!